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The Phillies Zone

Twenty-six days before the trading deadline, if Phillies general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. had his choice, he would acquire another pitcher over an infielder.

"At the end of the day, our team should be able to handle the loss offensively of a couple of these guys," Amaro said. "... But you can never have enough pitching especially when you're trying to contend."

Amaro said he has been "pretty proactive" in the trade market with several clubs. He said he has discussed trading for an infielder with some clubs, but has also had talks on other fronts, presumably for pitching. The GM said he could add both starting and relief help.

"I'm always more concerned about the pitching," Amaro said.

Poll

LeBron James is expected to announce Thursday night where he will play next season. Which of the following best reflects how you feel about it?

I hope he goes to the Knicks or Nets, so I can watch him play against the 76ers in the Atlantic Division.

I hope he goes to the Clippers in the West, so we won’t have to play him often.

At this point, I could not care less.

That begs the question, why trade Cliff Lee in the off-season?

"If we had Cliff Lee," Amaro said, "we wouldn't have Roy Halladay."

Amaro emphasized the same philosophy he has time and time again: The organization had traded too many prospects away and needed to restock the farm system. The fact that the Phillies had a chance to negotiate and sign Halladay to a long-term deal while Lee had higher demands was behind the decision to trade Lee, Amaro said.

If the cupboard was scarce in the off-season, is there enough talent to trade for help at the big-league level in the next three weeks? Amaro says he believes there is.

When asked if top prospect Domonic Brown could be involved in any trade, Amaro declined to answer. He did at least leave the door open for Brown to perhaps reach the majors in 2010.

In 12 games for triple-A Lehigh Valley since his promotion, Brown is hitting .405 (17 for 42) with three doubles, four home runs and 11 RBIs.

"Could he help us? Possibly," Amaro said. "But it's only been 12 games. He's making a good impression."

But, Amaro said, he would not bring Brown up to the Phillies unless it is to play every day. The only thing Brown still needs is experience at a higher level, Amaro said.